American Airlines AAdvantage: Your ultimate guide

American Airlines is one of the largest airlines in the world, and its AAdvantage loyalty program is popular with many travelers.

While the American AAdvantage program has seen some changes over the last few years, including the removal of published award charts and the introduction of Loyalty Points as the metric by which you earn elite status, you can still get a ton of value from the program.

This value is why the AAdvantage program won the Best U.S. Airline Loyalty Program title at the 2024 TPG Awards. So, let’s look at what you need to know about American Airlines AAdvantage.

American Airlines partners

American Airlines is part of the Oneworld alliance. American elite members get some perks when flying Oneworld airlines, but all AAdvantage members can earn and redeem miles when flying with the following Oneworld alliance airlines:

• Alaska Airlines
• British Airways
• Cathay Pacific
• Fiji Airways
• Finnair
• Iberia
• Japan Airlines
• Malaysia Airlines
• Oman Air (will likely join as a full member in late June)
• Qantas
• Qatar Airways
• Royal Air Maroc
• Royal Jordanian Airlines
• SriLankan Airlines
• S7 Airlines (currently suspended)

American AAdvantage also partners at various levels with a handful of airlines outside of Oneworld, including:

• Aer Lingus
• Air Tahiti Nui
• Cape Air
• China Southern Airlines
• Etihad Airways
• Gol Airlines
• Hawaiian Airlines
• IndiGo
• JetSmart

However, some partners are more integrated with American AAdvantage than others. So, review the specific partner airline page for full details.

Related: What are airline alliances, and who’s in them?

American AAdvantage member benefits

American AAdvantage elite status has four tiers with published qualification metrics — AAdvantage Gold, AAdvantage Platinum, AAdvantage Platinum Pro and AAdvantage Executive Platinum — plus an invitation-only tier called Concierge Key.

You can earn American Airlines status when you accrue a specific number of Loyalty Points during the 12-month qualification period from the beginning of March to the end of February each year.

However, even if you don’t earn elite status with American Airlines, you’ll still get some perks just for being an AAdvantage member. For example, AAdvantage members can board in Group 6 or earlier (except when flying on a basic economy ticket) and stand by for an earlier flight operated by American Airlines or American Eagle at no charge when traveling within the U.S., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

How to earn Loyalty Points

Loyalty Points are the metric that AAdvantage members must accrue to earn elite status. Generally, every base mile you earn is also a Loyalty Point you earn. However, bonus miles don’t get you Loyalty Points.

Here are some ways you can earn base miles that are Loyalty Point-eligible:

• Flights marketed by American Airlines, other Oneworld airlines and Gol Airlines
• Spending with eligible partners, including American Airlines Vacations, AAdvantage eShopping, AAdvantage Dining, SimplyMiles and AAdvantage Hotels
• Eligible purchases using an AAdvantage credit card (not including bonus miles and accelerators)

Elite status requirements and benefits

Here’s the number of Loyalty Points you must earn during the current qualification period — from the start of March to the end of February — for each American elite status tier:

• AAdvantage Gold: 40,000 Loyalty Points
• AAdvantage Platinum: 75,000 Loyalty Points
• AAdvantage Platinum Pro: 125,000 Loyalty Points
• AAdvantage Executive Platinum: 200,000 Loyalty Points

As an AAdvantage Gold member, you’ll get a 40% mileage bonus, complimentary Main Cabin Extra seats at check-in, complimentary Preferred seats at booking, Priority check-in, Group 4 boarding, and a first checked bag free on itineraries marketed and operated by American Airlines.

Meanwhile, AAdvantage Platinum members get a 60% mileage bonus, complimentary Preferred or Main Cabin Extra seats at booking, Group 3 boarding, Priority baggage handling, and a first and second checked bag free on itineraries marketed and operated by American Airlines.

AAdvantage Platinum Pro members get an 80% mileage bonus; Group 2 boarding; free same-day flight changes (on eligible routes); and a first, second and third checked bag free on itineraries marketed and operated by American Airlines.

Finally, AAdvantage Executive Platinum members get a 120% mileage bonus, Group 1 boarding, complimentary food and drinks when traveling in Main Cabin, and guaranteed availability in Main Cabin on sold-out American Airlines flights when they buy a full-fare ticket at least 24 hours in advance.

The checked baggage and seat benefits apply to the AAdvantage elite member and up to eight passengers traveling on their same reservation. AAdvantage elite members also have access to complimentary upgrades for themselves and up to one companion on the same flight when traveling within North America on American and Alaska Airlines. However, these upgrades are based on availability and often don’t clear, even for top-tier AAdvantage Executive Platinum members.

AAdvantage elite members also get Oneworld status, which provides perks when flying on other Oneworld airlines. Specifically, AAdvantage Gold members get Oneworld Ruby, AAdvantage Platinum members get Oneworld Sapphire, and AAdvantage Platinum Pro and AAdvantage Executive Platinum members get Oneworld Emerald status.

Loyalty Point Rewards

As you earn Loyalty Points each qualification period, you’ll earn Loyalty Point Rewards that are distinct from elite status tiers as you reach the following milestones:

• 15,000 Loyalty Points: Group 5 boarding and one choice of personalized luggage tag, 1,000 Loyalty Points, five Preferred Seat coupons, or Priority privileges and Group 4 boarding for a trip
• 60,000 Loyalty Points: Avis Preferred Plus status and a 20% Loyalty Point bonus when you spend with American Airlines Vacations, SimplyMiles, AAdvantage eShopping, AAdvantage Dining and AAdvantage Hotels within six months after qualifying
• 100,000 Loyalty Points: Avis President’s Club status; World of Hyatt Discoverist status; and a 30% Loyalty Point bonus when you spend with American Airlines Vacations, SimplyMiles, AAdvantage eShopping, AAdvantage Dining and AAdvantage Hotels within six months after qualifying
• 175,000 Loyalty Points: One choice of World of Hyatt Explorist status, 5,000 Loyalty Points, two systemwide upgrades, 20,000 bonus miles (25,000 bonus miles if you’re an AAdvantage credit card member), a $200 trip credit ($250 if you’re an AAdvantage credit card member), a 75-gallon sustainable aviation fuel allocation, a $250 donation to select nonprofit organizations, two gifts of AAdvantage Gold status or 35,000 AAdvantage miles toward a Mastercard Priceless Experience (only available to AAdvantage credit card members)
• 250,000 Loyalty Points: Two choices of World of Hyatt Explorist status, 15,000 Loyalty Points, two systemwide upgrades, 20,000 bonus miles (30,000 bonus miles if you’re an AAdvantage credit card member), an Admirals Club membership (requires two choices), a $200 trip credit ($250 if you’re an AAdvantage credit card member), a 100-gallon sustainable aviation fuel allocation, a $250 donation to select nonprofit organizations, two gifts of AAdvantage Gold status, a Bang & Olufsen product (requires two choices), one Flagship Lounge single visit pass (two Flagship Lounge single-visit passes if you’re an AAdvantage credit card member) or 35,000 AAdvantage miles toward a Mastercard Priceless Experience (only available to AAdvantage credit card members)
• 400,000, 550,000 and 750,000 Loyalty Points: Two choices of one World of Hyatt Category 1-4 free night award, one systemwide upgrade, 25,000 bonus miles, an Admirals Club membership (requires two choices), a $200 trip credit ($250 if you’re an AAdvantage credit card member), a 100-gallon sustainable aviation fuel allocation, one gift of AAdvantage Platinum status, a Bang & Olufsen product (requires two choices), two Flagship Lounge single-visit passes, one Flagship First Dining pass or 40,000 AAdvantage miles toward a Mastercard Priceless Experience (only available to AAdvantage credit card members)
• 1 million Loyalty Points: One choice of one World of Hyatt Category 1-7 free night award, four systemwide upgrades, a 250-gallon sustainable aviation fuel allocation, one gift of AAdvantage Platinum Pro status, up to 100,000 miles back on award redemptions or 150,000 AAdvantage miles toward a Mastercard Priceless Experience (only available to AAdvantage credit card members)
• 3 million Loyalty Points: One choice of one World of Hyatt Category 1-7 free night award, six systemwide upgrades, a 500-gallon sustainable aviation fuel allocation, one gift of AAdvantage Executive Platinum status, up to 300,000 miles back on award redemptions or 350,000 AAdvantage miles toward a Mastercard Priceless Experience (only available to AAdvantage credit card members)
• 5 million Loyalty Points: One choice of one World of Hyatt Category 1-7 free night award, 10 systemwide upgrades, a 1,000-gallon sustainable aviation fuel allocation, one gift of AAdvantage Executive Platinum status, up to 500,000 miles back on award redemptions or 550,000 AAdvantage miles toward a Mastercard Priceless Experience (only available to AAdvantage credit card members)

How to earn American miles

There are many ways to earn American miles. Below is a summary of the top ways.

Flights marketed by American Airlines and select partners

When you fly on a flight marketed by American Airlines, Aer Lingus, British Airways, Fiji Airways, Iberia and JetSmart, you’ll earn 5 base miles per dollar spent on the ticket (excluding government-imposed taxes and fees). However, basic economy fares only earn 2 base miles per dollar spent.

You’ll earn more base miles with AAdvantage elite status. Specifically, here’s how many base miles you’d earn with each status tier:

• Member (no status): 5 base miles per dollar (2 base miles per dollar for basic economy fares)
• AAdvantage Gold: 7 base miles per dollar (2.8 base miles per dollar for basic economy fares)
• AAdvantage Platinum: 8 base miles per dollar (3.2 base miles per dollar for basic economy fares)
• AAdvantage Platinum Pro: 9 base miles per dollar (3.6 base miles per dollar for basic economy fares)
• AAdvantage Executive Platinum: 11 base miles per dollar (4.4 base miles per dollar for basic economy fares)

Flights marketed by other partner airlines

You can also earn AAdvantage miles on most flights marketed by American’s partners. You’ll usually earn miles based on the flight distance and the ticket fare class. Here’s an example of the earning chart for Finnair-operated flights:

So, a traveler without AAdvantage status who flew on an E-fare class ticket booked through Finnair from Helsinki Airport (HEL) to Singapore Changi Airport (SIN) — which is 5,762 miles — would earn 5,762 base miles. However, a traveler with AAdvantage Platinum Pro status would earn 10,372 base miles on this ticket due to the 80% mileage bonus.

American Airlines credit cards

One of the easiest ways to earn miles is through American Airlines credit cards. Here’s a look at the current welcome offers and earning rates on some popular American Airlines credit cards:

The information for the Aviator Red Mastercard, Aviator Silver Mastercard and AAdvantage MileUp Card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Remember that welcome offers and bonus category earnings won’t get you Loyalty Points toward AAdvantage elite status. You’ll only earn 1 Loyalty Point per dollar spent on American Airlines cards. However, the following cards offer the possibility to earn more Loyalty Points when you reach specific thresholds:

• Citi / AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard: Earn a bonus of 10,000 Loyalty Points after reaching 50,000 Loyalty Points in a status qualification year; earn another bonus of 10,000 Loyalty Points after reaching 90,000 Loyalty Points in the same status qualification year.
• AAdvantage Aviator World Elite Silver Mastercard: Earn an additional 5,000 Loyalty Points after spending $20,000 on purchases made with the card account with a transaction date during the status qualification period; earn an additional 5,000 Loyalty Points during the same status qualification period after spending $40,000 on purchases with the card account; earn an additional 5,000 Loyalty Points during the same status qualification period after spending $50,000 on net purchases with the card account.

AAdvantage eShopping portal

When you click through the AAdvantage eShopping portal, you can earn American miles on your purchases with select online merchants.

Using the AAdvantage eShopping portal is simple: Log in using your normal American AAdvantage username and password, search for your desired merchant, and then click through the portal to the merchant before you shop online.

Related: Earn points, miles or cash back: How to maximize online shopping portals for your purchases

SimplyMiles

American AAdvantage offers a program called SimplyMiles that allows you to earn miles when shopping online or in person with select merchants. Log in to SimplyMiles using your normal American AAdvantage credentials, link one or more Mastercards to your profile, and enroll in offers.

Then, when you use a linked Mastercard to make an eligible purchase at a merchant for which you’ve enrolled in an offer, you’ll earn a set number of AAdvantage miles or a specific multiple of your purchase amount.

AAdvantage Dining

AAdvantage Dining lets you earn American miles when dining at participating local restaurants.

Log in using your normal American AAdvantage username and password, and link your favorite credit cards for dining. Once you do so, you’ll automatically earn miles when you dine at participating restaurants and pay with a linked card.

AAdvantage travel partners

American Airlines partners with major car rental companies so its members can earn miles on car rentals. Check out AAdvantage’s car rental partner page for information on partners and earning rates.

You can also earn AAdvantage miles on hotel stays. To do so, book your stay through the AAdvantage Hotels platform or book a qualifying stay with IHG, Marriott or Hyatt, and add your AAdvantage number at booking or check-in. When you do so, you can earn as follows:

• AAdvantage Hotels: Varies depending on stay
• Hyatt: 500 miles per stay
• IHG: Up to 2 miles per dollar spent on qualifying charges
• Marriott: Up to 2 miles per dollar spent on qualifying charges

In addition to the hotel and rental car partners mentioned above, you can also earn miles when you book American Airlines Cruises and American Airlines Vacations.

Bask Bank

If you open a savings account with Bask Bank, you can elect to earn AAdvantage miles instead of cash interest on your account. Unfortunately, miles earned via Bask Bank do not count as Loyalty Points.

Buy miles

Finally, you can buy miles. Watch for promotions that allow you to buy American miles with a bonus or discount.

How to redeem American miles

Redeeming American miles for flights usually provides the best value. TPG’s June 2025 valuations estimate American miles to be worth 1.5 cents each, so try to get at least this value when redeeming miles. Here’s a look at some of the best ways to redeem American miles.

Flights

American Airlines publishes award charts with starting rates. You’ll find different charts for American- and partner-operated flights. However, the charts for American-operated award flights aren’t all that helpful since, in practice, you’ll find widely varying rates that change frequently based on your routing, when you book and when you’re traveling.

The partner award charts are more useful. Although the charts list starting rates, you’ll often find awards at the starting rates on many partners. However, we’re starting to see AAdvantage offer additional award availability with select partners at higher award rates. For example, the partner award chart says one-way economy awards between the U.S. and the South Pacific (the region that includes Fiji) start at 40,000 miles and business-class awards start at 80,000 miles. But you’ll see much higher rates on some dates.

In short, the best way to determine how many miles an award itinerary will cost is to head to the American Airlines website or mobile app and do an award search. You can book award flights with little hesitation since you can cancel anytime before your first flight departs and redeposit your miles back into your account for free.

Related: Best uses of American Airlines AAdvantage miles

Upgrades

On some itineraries, you can also redeem American miles for an upgrade to the next cabin of service.

American recently rolled out the ability to buy an instant upgrade online or via the airline’s app. You can use cash or miles for these instant upgrades, which the airline prices dynamically. Based on our tests, redeeming American miles for these upgrades will only give you a value of about 1 cent per mile. If your itinerary is eligible, you should see upgrade options when you open your itinerary on the American Airlines website or app.

However, through Aug. 11, you can still request upgrades for one-way trips with up to three segments based on the mileage upgrade award chart. You must call American AAdvantage to process these upgrades, but they’ll usually provide better value for your miles.

Only some fare classes are eligible, so check American’s upgrade page for eligibility and pricing.

Related: How much should you pay for a first-class upgrade?

Admirals Club membership

You can redeem American miles for an Admirals Club membership, but you’ll only get a value of 1 cent per mile. Here’s a look at the mileage costs for an Admirals Club membership based on your American elite status tier:

Paying for a membership offers better value than redeeming American miles. However, the best deal is to get a complimentary Admirals Club membership as a benefit of the Citi / AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard.

Related: 3 reasons why this is the best card for Admirals Club lounge access

Enhance with miles

As you reach different Loyalty Point tiers (the first is at 40,000 Loyalty Points) during a qualification period, you can use some of your miles to give someone else status for a day, obtain a Flagship First Dining pass or get a Hyatt free night award.

The options in your account will vary depending on how many Loyalty Points you earned during the current or previous qualification period.

Related: Airline and hotel loyalty programs that let you give the gift of elite status

Bottom line

The American Airlines AAdvantage program is far from perfect. But if you know how to make it work and can be flexible when booking award flights, there’s still plenty of value to be found.

An American Airlines credit card has become increasingly important to earn AAdvantage elite status. It’s also worth using the AAdvantage eShopping portal and SimplyMiles, regardless of whether you’re interested in earning American miles, trying to qualify for American Airlines elite status or both.